abigailb
In the Brooder
Hello! My 5 hens just turned a year old. Four of them have some feather loss near the base of the tail; you can see the under fluff. One of the four actually has a bald patch that is red but not scabby, it looks like there are pin feathers but it has looked that way for several weeks without progress. For the one with a bald patch, it first appeared when we still had a rooster, so I figured that was the culprit. She wore a hen apron for a couple of months. When the rooster was re-homed and I took the apron off, I was surprised that the patch was still bare, but it didn't look any worse, so I figured it was maybe still due to the rooster, even with the apron in place, and that it would grow back. The rooster has been gone for a couple of months now and more were starting to look fluffy back there, so I started to suspect mites or lice instead. I did multiple thorough inspections, including around the vent feathers for lice eggs, and at night with a flashlight for mites. I found absolutely nothing, but just to be on the extra safe side I treated all birds and the coop with elector PSP (about a month ago). Nothing changed. I have googled like crazy and it seems the only remaining explanation is that they are picking and eating the feathers. But I have not EVER ONCE seen one do this (pick themselves or at each other). Is there any other cause? They all appear healthy otherwise, nice color on comb and wattles. I get 3 eggs a day from the 5 of them, but one of them is constantly going broody and has been sleeping in the nestbox, so I assume she is not laying. The only other thing is that I think they look a bit small, but since they've just turned a year maybe not full grown yet? We feed Eggland's Best Organic mini-pellets and Scratch and Peck Layer. They barely eat the pellets as they prefer the scratch and peck (which is a mix of actual grains, legumes etc.). They do have their favorite ingredients in the scratch and peck...is it possible they are getting incomplete nutrition by picking out their favorite grains etc.? Could this cause the base of the tail feather loss? Thank you so much for taking the time to read all of this, I am at a loss! And especially concerned about the one who has had the bald patch for many month now.
Editing to add photos, the best I could get for right now. The bald patch (SLW) is larger than it appears in the photo.
Editing to add photos, the best I could get for right now. The bald patch (SLW) is larger than it appears in the photo.
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